Retail sales rise again in March, surprising analysts

Retailers delivered another decent performance last month, with shoppers continuing to spend despite poor weather, high gasoline prices and a later Easter.

Retail analysts had expected to see the first monthly sales decline since 2009 because of those factors, which threatened to slow the industry's recent momentum.

But shoppers couldn't be deterred. On Thursday, the nation's retailers reported a modest 1.7% year-over-year increase for March, better than the 0.7% decline that had been expected, according to Thomson Reuters' tally of 25 major retail chains.

"This gain, in the face of somewhat adverse factors, was encouraging and reflected a solid underlying trend in consumer demand," said Michael Niemira, chief economist of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Read Full Article from Los Angeles Times

- Posted: 2011-04-07 10:57:53

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